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Tag Archives: Their Finest

Director April Mullen and her all-female crew on the set of Below Her Mouth, 2015.

Here are thirteen new movies due to be released in theaters or via other viewing platforms this April, all of which have been directed and/or photographed by women. These titles are sure to intrigue cinephiles and also provoke meaningful discussions on the film world, as well as the world in general.

MARCH 31 (NYC), APRIL 7 (LA): Cézanne et Moi (dir. Danièle Thompson) – Landmark Sunshine Cinema synopsis: “Cézanne et Moi is the compelling and moving chronicle of the surprising lifelong love/hate relationship between two of the creative geniuses of the 19th century, post-impressionist painter Paul Cézanne (Guillaume Gallienne, Yves Saint Laurent) and novelist Émile Zola (Guillaume Canet, Tell No One). Zola came from a poor family and wrote proletarian novels, but eventually won fame and fortune; Cezanne, the rebellious son of a rich banker, had long years of poverty and struggle as an artist, rejecting society in pursuit of art. They met as schoolboys in Aix-en-Provence, both outcasts, and became best friends; both sought the bright lights of Paris as young men, living life to the fullest. Rebellion and curiosity, hopes and doubts, girls and dreams of glory—they shared it all; yet rivalry and hurt feelings drove them apart. This gorgeous production was shot in part on location in Provence around Montagne Saint-Victoire, memorialized in so many of Cezanne’s paintings. Written and directed by Danièle Thompson (Avenue Montaigne, Jet Lag), an Academy Award nominee for her Cousin Cousine screenplay.”

APRIL 7 (in theaters and on Video on Demand): Alive and Kicking (dir. Susan Glatzer) – Synopsis from the film’s official website: “Alive and Kicking is a feature-length documentary that takes an inside look into the culture of swing dancing and the characters who make it special. We explore the culture surrounding Swing dance from the emergence of the Lindy Hop to the modern day international phenomenon. The film follows the growth of Swing dance from its purely American roots as an art form, to countries all over the world. Alive and Kicking looks at the lives of the Swing dancers themselves to find their personal stories and why this dance fills them with joy.”

APRIL 7: Their Finest (dir. Lone Scherfig) – Toronto International Film Festival synopsis: “Featuring a cast teeming with some of the UK’s most charismatic comedic actors, Bill Nighy and Richard E. Grant among them, Their Finest is about boosting morale in a period of national — and personal — crisis.

“Catrin Cole (Gemma Arterton) is a ‘slop’ scriptwriter, charged with bringing a female perspective to war films produced by the British Ministry of Information’s Film Division. Her current project is a feature inspired by stories of British civilians rescuing soldiers after the retreat at Dunkirk. Catrin’s artist husband looks down on her job, despite the fact that it’s paying the rent. At least lead scenarist Tom Buckley (Sam Claflin) appreciates her efforts.

“While on location in Devon, Catrin begins to come into her own and earn the respect of her peers. She’s the only crewperson that Ambrose Hilliard (Nighy), a past-his-prime yet nonetheless pompous actor, will talk to.

“Based on the novel Their Finest Hour and a Half by Lissa Evans, the film pops with witty banter and flows with lovely period detail. The characters are uniformly textured and the performances nuanced. Nighy is perfectly cast in his endearingly withering role, and Jeremy Irons turns up for a delicious cameo. It is, however, Arterton’s show. She brings subtlety, intelligence, and a range of beautifully gauged emotions to Catrin, whose path to self-renewal is an inspiring example of a talented woman forging her place in the world.”

APRIL 12: Glory (dirs. Kristina Grozeva and Petar Valchanov) – Film Forum synopsis: “Frank Capra by way of Bulgaria. When a disheveled railroad worker discovers fistfuls of money on some rural train tracks, he turns over the dough to the police. The grateful authorities reward him with a televised ceremony and a new wristwatch to replace his old one (a family heirloom). But the glitzy new watch stops working and the smarmy, workaholic publicist for the Ministry of Transport can’t seem to find his old one. The man’s nonstop attempts to get his beloved old watch back wreak havoc on her efforts to use the heart-warming story of an honest good Samaritan to distract public attention from a burgeoning corruption scandal. A simple premise deepens into an incisive portrait of a bureaucracy riven with cynicism and a government happy to swallow its most idealistic citizens whole. From the directors, and starring the lead actors, of The Lesson, which Film Forum opened in 2015.”

APRIL 14: Maurizio Cattelan: Be Right Back (dir. Maura Axelrod) – Synopsis from the film’s official website: “In the documentary feature Maurizio Cattelan: Be Right Back, filmmaker Maura Axelrod excavates Maurizio Cattelan’s disruptive and indelible career as the art world prankster of our time. Interviewing curators, collectors, art-world luminaries (and even his ex-girlfriends), to build a compelling picture of the conceptual artist and what makes him tick.

“Known best for his shocking photorealistic wax sculpture of Pope John Paul being felled by a meteorite, and of a child-size Hitler kneeling in prayer, Cattelan’s work is often wildly offensive – and yet incredibly popular – selling for tens of millions of dollars at auction.

“The film explores the origins of Cattelan’s work, and delves into the mythology of the famously elusive artist’s personal story as well. And like the best mysteries, viewers emerge from this dizzying journey knowing everything and nothing about a man who, from his professional inception, ushered us into a dazzling hall of mirrors that enchants and perplexes to this day. Maurizio Cattelan shook up the contemporary art world beginning in the late 1980s with a series of action-based installations including his first solo show in Milan, Torno Subito (Be Right Back), in which he padlocked an empty gallery – barring entrance to critics and spectators – and simply hung a sign on the door that read ‘Torno Subito’ or ‘Be Right Back.’

“Over his twenty-year career, Cattelan has continued to provoke and inspire, culminating in an all-encompassing installation and the proclamation of his retirement in 2011. His stunning final exhibition at the Guggenheim Museum in New York City features all of his works to date suspended – execution style, as sharper critics described it – from the ceiling of the world-famous museum’s rotunda, encapsulating a brief but meteoric career that Cattelan himself supposedly terminated at the height of his success.”

APRIL 14 (San Francisco), APRIL 21 (NYC and other cities): Tomorrow (dirs. Cyril Dion and Mélanie Laurent) – Synopsis from the film’s official website: “Showing solutions, telling a feel-good story… this may be the best way to solve the ecological, economical and social crises that our countries are going through. After a special briefing for the journal Nature announced the possible extinction of a part of mankind before the end of the 21st century, Cyril Dion and Mélanie Laurent, together with a team of four people, carried out an investigation in ten different countries to figure out what may lead to this disaster and above all how to avoid it.

“During their journey, they met the pioneers who are re-inventing agriculture, energy, economy, democracy and education. Joining those concrete and positive actions which are already working, they began to figure out what could be tomorrow’s world…”

APRIL 21: Jeremiah Tower: The Last Magnificent (dir. Lydia Tenaglia) – Grub Street post by Sierra Tishgart: “Almost a year after debuting at film festivals, executive producer Anthony Bourdain and director Lydia Tenaglia’s documentary, Jeremiah Tower: The Last Magnificent, will hit theaters next month — premiering in New York and Los Angeles on April 21.

“The film explores Tower’s successful yet mysterious career in cooking: He’s credited by many as a chef who revolutionized cooking in this country, yet his name remains unknown to many people outside the industry. He first made a name for himself at Chez Panisse in 1972, but left after a dispute with owner Alice Waters, eventually opening Stars Restaurant in San Francisco to international acclaim. But after a few years, he left Stars, too. More than two decades later, he returned to professional cooking for a stint at New York’s fabled Tavern on the Green.

“Tower may not get the same recognition as his contemporaries, but as Bourdain explains in the trailer, ‘We should know who changed the world — we should know their names.’ Interviews with Mario Batali, Ruth Reichl, and Martha Stewart reinforce Tower’s role as one of the founding fathers of American food.”

“Tessa Connover (Heigl) is barely coping with the end of her marriage when her ex-husband, David (Stults), becomes happily engaged to Julia Banks (Dawson)—not only bringing Julia into the home they once shared but also into the life of their daughter, Lily. Trying to settle into her new life, Julia believes she has finally met the man of her dreams, the man who can help her put her own troubled past behind her. But Tessa’s jealousy soon takes a pathological turn until she will stop at nothing to turn Julia’s dream into her ultimate nightmare.”

APRIL 26: Obit. (dir. Vanessa Gould) – Film Forum synopsis: “When New York Times writer Bruce Weber comes into the office, the first thing he says is: ‘Who’s dead?’ Times editor William McDonald, Weber, Margalit Fox, William Grimes, Douglas Martin, Paul Vitello, and others appear on screen — very much alive — in Vanessa Gould’s witty, eye-opening inside account of the ‘dead beat’ – the Times’s obituaries desk. According to Grimes, ‘dull, dry, responsible’ copy was once the norm. Today, the paper’s obits are among the best-written, most-read articles, and an ever-fascinating showcase for notable lives and achievements, from Nobel Prize winners to the inventor of the Slinky. Gould lets us in on more than a few secrets: how subjects are ultimately chosen, who merits star placement, who has an ‘advance obit’ (there are 1700 on file, kept under lock and key), and how the Times maintains its vast archive. Sole morgue-keeper Jeff Roth gives us a breathless tour of the paper’s century-old trove of clippings and photographs.”

APRIL 28 (in theaters and on Video on Demand): Below Her Mouth (dir. April Mullen) (DP: Maya Bankovic) – Toronto International Film Festival synopsis by Magali Simard: “One of the boldest and sexiest dramas of the year, April Mullen’s Below Her Mouth tells the story of an unexpected romance between two women whose passionate connection changes their lives forever.

“Jasmine (Natalie Krill) is a successful fashion editor living with her fiancé, Rile (Sebastian Pigott). On a night out in the city with her best friend, she meets Dallas (Erika Linder), a roofer recently out of a relationship. Jasmine is taken by surprise when Dallas confidently hits on her; she turns Dallas down, but can’t get her out of her head.

“Dallas continues her cool, self-assured advances. In a matter of days, Jasmine succumbs and the two women embark on a steamy affair. It feels like a fantasy world compared to Jasmine’s life and plans with Rile, but soon reality rears its head, and she will have to face the profound changes their sudden romance has wrought in her.

“Stephanie Fabrizi’s screenplay powerfully and honestly explores what happens when two women fall hard for each other, and Mullen brings the story to the screen with uninhibited flair and assurance, showing us how love can arise from some of the messiest times in our lives.

“Below Her Mouth is a rarity in more than one way: it’s a fiction film shot with an entirely female crew, and it’s an uncommonly frank look at the all-encompassing nature of attraction — the good, the bad, the ugly, and the transcendendent.”

APRIL 28: Buster’s Mal Heart (dir. Sarah Adina Smith) – Toronto International Film Festival synopsis by Colin Geddes: “An eccentric mountain man is on the run from the authorities, surviving the winter by breaking into empty vacation homes in a remote community. Regularly calling into radio talk shows — where he has acquired the nickname ‘Buster’ — to rant about the impending dangers of Y2K, he is haunted by visions of being lost at sea, and memories of his former life as a family man.

“Buster (Rami Malek) was once Jonah, a hard-working husband and father whose job as the night-shift concierge at a hotel took its toll on his mood and, consequently, his marriage to the sensitive and long-suffering Marty (Kate Lyn Sheil) — until a chance encounter with a conspiracy-obsessed drifter (DJ Qualls) changed the course of their lives forever. As the sad and solitary present-day Buster drifts from house to house and eludes the local sheriff at every turn, we gradually piece together the events that fractured his life and left him alone on top of a snowy mountain, or perhaps in a small rowboat in the middle of a vast ocean — or both.

“Following the found-footage genre twister The Midnight Swim, Sarah Adina Smith’s second feature puts her on another level as a writer and director. Beautiful, enigmatic and elliptical, Buster’s Mal Heart also features a powerful performance from Malek as the silent, broken protagonist. Taking his first big-screen leading role after his starring turn in the hit TV series Mr. Robot, Malek proves here that he’s more than capable of carrying the weight of a feature film.”

APRIL 28 (in theaters and streaming on Netflix): Casting JonBenét (dir. Kitty Green) – Excerpts from The Hollywood Reporter’s Sundance Film Festival review by Leslie Felperin: “Building on an approach to nonfiction storytelling she first explored in the her award-winning short The Face of Ukraine: Casting Oksana Baiul, Australian filmmaker Kitty Green creates something powerful, provocative and dazzlingly original with her second feature documentary, Casting JonBenét. In essence, this sui generis work offers a kaleidoscopic array of personal reactions to the famous 1996 murder of six-year-old beauty pageant contestant JonBenét Ramsay.

“But the interviewees are not people who were directly involved in the case, although some had very tangential connections to the murder. Instead, they are all actors: a mix of professional and non-pro, from in and around Boulder, Colorado (where JonBenét lived and died), auditioning to play the murdered child’s now-deceased mother, Patsy, father, John, brother, Burke and, of course, JonBenét herself, among others.

“Over the course of the film, the participants share not just their own hunches and suspicions about what happened that morning after Christmas, but also personal revelations about themselves and why the case resonates with them so deeply 20 years on. Ultimately, this evolves into a layered meditation on many things — crime and guilt, the exploitation of children and acting itself, to name just a few.

“…The point, however — unlike many of the documentaries about the case over the years, some of which have prompted libel cases from the surviving Ramsey family members — is not to make a definitive argument that this or that person or persons, known or unknown, killed JonBenét. Rather, her tragic death becomes a prism through which the stories and feelings of the actors themselves, and of course our own, are refracted. A man shares how his performance changed between the time he was cast for this film and the time he was called in for the film’s grand finale, because in the intervening time he was diagnosed with cancer. One woman shares how she was sexually abused as a child when she was about JonBenét’s age, while another discusses how her own brother’s murder affects her perspective on the case and her need to bear witness through acting.

“…As did Andrew Jarecki’s Capturing the Friedmans and Clio Barnard’s The Arbor, Casting JonBenét expands the formal horizons of documentary, blurring the lines between fact and fiction, not to take a particular side, but to question how we can ever know what really happened. It may be about a murder that occurred more than 20 years ago, but on another level it’s a film that feels very much a product of these troubled, post-truth times.”

APRIL 28: Danger Close (dirs. David Salzberg and Christian Tureaud) (DP: Alex Quade) – Cinema Village synopsis: “Directed by David Salzberg and Christian Tureaud, whose previous work includes the acclaimed military documentaries Citizen Soldier and The Hornet’s Nest. This riveting documentary follows Alex Quade, the only reporter and only female ever embedded long-term with U.S. Special Operations Forces (SOF) overseas on highly classified combat missions, as she embeds with elite SOF (including the U.S. Army Special Forces or Green Berets, Army Rangers, Navy Seals, and CIA clandestine operatives) to tell their stories from the front lines. Danger Close follows Alex as she lives alongside these highly trained forces on some of the most daring missions ever documented in Iraq and Afghanistan.”